Did they bump you off a flight

It is no surprise that a large majority of passengers fly without any knowledge of their rights. One of the reasons is that the passenger profile has changed and in far too many cases the cabin and ground crews are no longer servicing their peers or the more accomplished sections of society. On the contrary they are now at the call of what they feel are their intellectual and social inferiors and this aspect also places a certain stress on their attitudes.
Every day in the caverns of major airports of the world the pledge is broken. Assurances of reception and guidance at alien airports  evaporate on arrival. The glossy airline booklet showing a sunny faced staffer comes to life in the form of a grumpy, sour-faced haridan who is curt to the point of rebuff. The guarantees of airport transfers, meal vouchers, hotel rooms, the rights of "okay" ticketed passengers, the special facilities for the young, the old and the infirm are often not ordered because the ground staff just isn't in the mood for the paperwork and anyway, it is time for the new shift. How many passengers have experienced the helplessness of being told that their confirmed booking is not confirmed and they have to chance it. It is on this canvas that the customary in season trick on passengers is being played purely to safeguard the interests of the airline.
Although it can break even on a 60 percent load an airline plying a high density route doesn't mind a 100 percent flight manifest. To insure itself against the no shows it overbooks. That means it "okays" tickets over the number of seats. Now what happens is that on some days everyone shows up creating what is now being recognised officially in the aviation world as "bumping". You know what I am talking about. There you are feeling confident and smug that you are holding a confirmed seat when the counter clerk says, I am sorry, Sir, but you came late, the flight was overbooked and we've closed the manifest, yes, I know you have an okay seat Sir, but we can't help it, there are no seats, we will do our best, Sir, here's a lunch voucher.
Keep your lousy voucher, get me your M.D., I have an important meeting. Don't we all? The airlines call it bumping. Their senior management calls it involuntary boarding denial. It can happen because of any number of reasons including the fact that you are not a commercially important person (CIP) or a VIP or the airline knows that you are not capable of giving it a hard ride. Bumping is now integral to airline operations and as many as 100 passengers can be bumped in a day at any of the major airports of the world. There are inducements to volunteers that include cash compensation and it has been recorded that professional volunteers have even made a living by frequent well planned "sacrifices." Airlines have an impressive defence. A major airline can lose as much as 50,000 seats a year by no shows and have to undergo the absurd experience of taking off with empty seats while passengers chafe on ground because they are stranded. So often have passengers fought hard and waited nervously for a reprieve when they are summoned with five minutes to go.
The airline that left you stranded is supposed to board you onto the next available flight even if it is another carrier. But that is a loss of revenue so fobbing you off with a voucher and asking you to wait x hours till the next flight is the best option for them. Most people do not accept it.
A good airline will upgrade its regular Economy passengers or those who have paid a premium for the ticket to Biz class and use those seats to accommodate those standing by. Yes,dress, education, your personality and social grace counts and the reason for that is you are being foisted on passengers who have paid five times the price for exclusivity. They also expect a certain standard of passenger next to them.